


can't plant seeds in a dirty town

by Rumpleteazing



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fallout (Video Games) Setting, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attacks, Post-Apocalypse, Post-Nuclear War, Survival, Swearing, Violence, more characters will be introduced
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:35:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27389572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rumpleteazing/pseuds/Rumpleteazing
Summary: What a situation.Of all the people in the entire world he could have been stuck with in this scenario, it was fucking Tubbo. The thought almost made him snort with laughter, except there was nothing about the position they were in that was actually funny. They had no idea where their friends were, if they were even alive, and didn’t even know if they, themselves, were going to make it any longer than a week. Schlatt rolled his eyes.Yeah. What a fucking situation.-Or, Schlatt and Tubbo wake up 200 years in the future to find the world has crumbled around them.
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 64





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> heavily fallout based but pre-knowledge of fallout isn't really needed... essentially schlatt + tubbo were in some form of stasis for about 200 years in a vault designed outwardly to protect mankind from nuclear warfare (but in reality were used to carry out various experiments) ... upon waking up, they find the world is a wasteland, now, and only have each other to survive.

What a situation.

Schlatt lay lazily on a low beam in their run down shack, one arm hanging limply down and in the other, he repeatedly tossed and caught an apple. His eyes lingered on the figure who was huddled in front of the window below, blanket wrapped cozily around his small frame and his fluff of brown hair just about visible as he gazed out at the wasteland.

Yeah. What a fucking situation.

Of all the people in the entire world he could have been stuck with in this scenario, it was fucking  _ Tubbo _ . The thought almost made him snort with laughter, except there was nothing about the position they were in that was actually funny. They had no idea where their friends were, if they were even alive, and didn’t even know if they, themselves, were going to make it any longer than a week. Schlatt rolled his eyes.

He sure as Hell wouldn’t with Tubbo weighing him down.

With a sigh, Schlatt jumped down from where he was sitting. The sudden movement apparently caught Tubbo off guard, because he jumped, startled, and turned to look at Schlatt with wide eyes. The man had to restrain himself from groaning or rolling his eyes, and instead he turned to rummage through his backpack.

“You good? Ready to move?” He grunted as he began to shove his loose belongings into the bag. He didn’t have much. Not much survived the holocaust.

“What?” Tubbo’s voice sounded bleary. Had he been asleep? “We’re leaving? Why?”

“ _ Yes _ , we’re leaving, Tubbo,” Schlatt snapped, but he felt a little guilty at that. As much of a burden he was convinced Tubbo was, it was hard to not feel some sympathy for him. He’d lost just as much as Schlatt had, and maybe even more, and was stuck in this Hellhole at the age of sixteen. He sighed, turning to look at the younger boy with a half sympathetic, half irritated expression. “If a radstorm hits now, you and I are as good as dead, buddy.”

Tubbo furrowed his brows, frowned, then turned to look out the window again. Fine. Be like that. With a sigh, Schlatt stretched and stood up properly. “Did you eat?”

Tubbo glanced back over and shook his head. Wordlessly, Schlatt tossed him the untouched apple he had been holding. Tubbo just about managed to catch it. “Thanks, Schlatt.”

“Sure.”

-

“I’m cold.”   
  
“You’re what? It’s fucking boiling. Are you sick?”

Tubbo didn’t answer his question. They’d been travelling the wasteland for an hour, give or take, and Tubbo had been almost completely silent the whole time, trailing a few steps behind Schlatt. Now, the man eyed Tubbo with an almost accusatory suspicion, face scrunched up in mock disgust. “Keep away from me, then.”

Tubbo sniffed, glaring at the horned man with half-hearted frustration. “I’m not sick.”

“If you say so. Just… no coughin’ or sneezin’ on me, or I’m leaving you here as a snack for a deathclaw.” Tubbo rolled his eyes at that, but he edged closer to Schlatt at the mention of the creature. Schlatt smirked with satisfaction at the visible unease creeping through the boy. “Nah, maybe you’d be better suited as a toothpick for one of those bad boys. Or maybe you wouldn’t be worth their time, and they’d leave you for the mole rats to tear apart.”

“Shut up, Schlatt,” Tubbo muttered, rolling his eyes. But now he was right beside the older man, giving a subtle glance over his shoulder at the horizon behind them as if scouring for any of the vicious creatures. Schlatt gave a snort, but dropped the conversation. The two trekked on for a few minutes in silence, before it was broken by Tubbo.

“I’m tired.”

Schlatt rolled his eyes. “Yeah, so am I, but there’s not much I can do about that. Suck it up and stop being a little bitch,” he muttered, ears flicking with irritation. The complaining was already starting to get on his nerves. Tubbo just hummed, then was quiet for a few seconds.

“I miss Tommy-”   
  
“Will you shut up?” Schlatt snapped suddenly, cutting off Tubbo before he could finish. He had stopped in his tracks and had turned to face the younger boy, who was looking very startled and taken aback. His mismatched eyes were ablaze with irritation, ram ears driven back against his head. “ _ I don’t care _ that you miss your friends,  _ I don’t care _ that you miss  _ Tommy _ . Suck it up! Stop fucking complaining! Jesus Christ, you’re gettin’ on my nerves real fast. I’m doin’ a good thing, I’m helping you out, I could leave you for dead and by God would that be a fucking burden lifted off my shoulders. But I just - I can’t even think for a minute with you yappin’ out your little complaints. Just - Just shut up and follow me.”

Tubbo felt like that was a little unfair. He hadn’t complained that much, and had been quiet for the most part of their journey, but he did just as Schlatt had instructed. He clamped his mouth shut, not bothering to process the hurt Schlatt’s words had actually caused him, and trailed behind him. Any fears of deathclaws coming and snatching him had disappeared as quickly as Schlatt’s demeanor had changed, and his biggest focus now was keeping that space between himself and the older man.

He dragged his feet across the sandy ground. He didn’t feel like complaining anymore.

-

They had found themselves holed up in some settlement for the night. It was a small village, and it seemed like the buildings were barely standing, but the people were welcoming (suspiciously so - Schlatt didn’t trust them) and they had offered to allow the two travellers to stay for a couple of days. They had a lot of empty houses, and they could do with some extra hands to help them out for a bit, or so they’d said. Schlatt had agreed, begrudgingly, because they really did need somewhere to stay and they wouldn’t do much better anywhere else - not that they had the time to find another place before night hit. Besides, these buildings seemed at least more sound and secure than the last shack they’d been holed up in, all alone in an otherwise flattened village.

Schlatt had insisted they keep up their system of one person keeping watch as the other sleeps, just to be safe, but Tubbo thought they should trust the settlers. Schlatt thought that was stupid and naive, and told Tubbo as much. Tubbo hadn’t responded to that.

“Schlatt?” Tubbo murmured softly from his place under the blanket. The man didn’t turn around from where he was sat on the window ledge, staring out into the darkness of the night. He’d insisted that Tubbo slept first, and hey, Tubbo wasn’t about to complain about that. “Why didn’t you just… leave me out in the wasteland?”

“...what?”

“You could’ve run off in the middle of the night when we were in that shack. Or you could have just left me when we were travelling. ‘N then you wouldn’t have to look after me, keep me around, I wouldn’t get on your nerves then and you’d… I wouldn’t be a burden.” His sleepiness was making him more confident, able to speak his mind. Schlatt’s words from that morning had been ringing in his skull all day, from the rest of their silent wasteland trek to when they were helping out the settlers with their farm and defences. It felt weird, but strangely good, too, to get his thoughts out.

“...just go to sleep, Tubbo.”

“Okay.”

-

When Tubbo woke up, it was morning, and that alarmed him. Schlatt was supposed to wake him up hours ago - that was what they arranged, they took it in turns, and immediately sirens blared in Tubbo’s mind. Something was wrong. He sat up, throwing the blanket off him, and squinting against the sun that shone through the window. He looked around the room, panic setting in his chest as he noticed the absence of his companion, the absence of his companion’s belongings, and the words from their last confrontation came to mind.

He was an idiot. Schlatt was right - he was stupid and naive. It was stupid and naive of him to think Schlatt would stay, especially after the venom-coated words he had spat at Tubbo yesterday. And he was stupid for reminding Schlatt how much of a burden he was last night, because Schlatt had obviously realised he was right and had run off and left him in the dead of the night. Tubbo didn’t blame him - if he was such a burden, Schlatt had every right to want to be alone. This was a world where you had to look after yourself.

Still, as the full realisation of how alone he was now set in, tears pricked at the corners of his eyes and something weighed heavy against his chest. His breaths came quick and fast as the panic set in, and his head throbbed, pressure building up as his hands trembled. He was so lost, curled in on himself that he didn’t hear the door clicking open - nor did he hear his name being called, or the tray being set down. He was only aware of somebody else’s presence when he felt their hands on his shoulder, which made Tubbo flinch.

“Tubbo, what’s happening?”   
  
He barely acknowledged the words, and certainly didn’t formulate a response. Not a properly coherent one, anyway, because he choked out something that could barely be deciphered as ‘he’s gone.’

“Who - what? Hey, stay with me, champ.”   
  
Tubbo couldn’t put a finger on that voice. It sounded so, so familiar, but at the same time distant and icy. He scrunched up his face, before blinking open his eyes as his body racked with quick breaths and heavy sobs. He glanced up, freezing on instinct as the person’s face came into view.

He was familiar. He had dark brown hair and tanned skin with big, brown horns that curled up over the very edge of his cheeks, and white-furred, ram-like ears that were angled backwards with some unpleasant emotion that Tubbo couldn’t quite place yet. He had mismatched eyes, one chocolate brown and one an odd, hard-to-place shade of hazel, but both were shining with concern, brows furrowed. It was an emotion Tubbo wasn’t used to seeing on Schlatt.

He sat there for a few seconds, chest rising and falling as he struggled for his breath, Schlatt’s hands firmly on his shoulders. His expression was frozen in one of fear and confusion, face red and wet, before he scrunched up his eyes and pulled Schlatt into a hug, face buried in his chest and hands gripping the back of his hoodie. Schlatt froze at the sudden contact, before patting the young boy’s back awkwardly with obvious discomfort, but he let Tubbo stay there without any complaints or movements for about twenty minutes, when the kid had stopped trembling and sobbing and has slowly moved himself away, wiping his face with his sleeves.

Schlatt didn’t say anything. He just sat there, watching the boy compose himself with some mildly concerned expression. Tubbo sniffed. “I thought you’d left me.”

The man didn’t give an answer, but titled his head in a questioning manner.

“Um… you never woke me up to keep watch,” Tubbo elaborated. “It was morning when I woke up.”   
  
“You needed the rest.”

“...thanks,” he mumbled quietly but sincerely. It was a nice gesture from Schlatt - even if the man would probably write it off as ‘to stop your complaining’ or ‘you’d be useless if you were tired’ later on. In reality, it was a small sign that he at least cared a little, even if it was only a tiny bit. Schlatt probably didn’t even know it himself. “Sorry about… all this. I was being stupid.”   
  
Schlatt gave a half smile, and reached a hand forward to squeeze Tubbo’s knee before standing up and heading out the room.

“Schlatt?”

He paused in the doorway, not turning around but angling his ear.

“You won’t leave me, will you?”

Schlatt turned his head ever so slightly, fixing Tubbo with a half-hearted, yet oddly reassuring smile.

“You and me against the Commonwealth, buddy.” His words were strained.   
  
It was enough.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! sorry for the delay.
> 
> tw in this chapter for violence and injury.

The breeze was gentle and warm against Tubbo’s face, the morning sunlight brightening the settlement he resided in. He sat on the wooden porch of a house, keeping watch while his companion slept in the building behind him. Giving a soft sigh, he scanned the village with tired eyes. People were already up and about, tending to the farms and switching over guard duty. He would have to wake Schlatt up soon - they’d be leaving this morning.

They had stayed in the settlement for three days now, and that morning marked the beginning of their fourth. They’d helped out the settlers with their farm and watch duties, and in return they had seemed happy to provide them with shelter, food and clean water. But they needed to reach Diamond City - that was the plan - and the longer they stayed here, the longer it would take them to get there.

Rustling to the left dragged Tubbo from his thoughts, and he stood up quickly. He crept over, eyes trained on the disturbed vegetation, when the head of a dog emerged from a dried bush. It looked just as surprised as Tubbo was and hesitated, before letting out a growl and backing up.

“Uh… hi,” Tubbo said, uncertainty clear in his voice. He crouched down. “Hi, boy, I’m not going to hurt you.” He offered his hand out, and the dog approached gingerly, nose twitching as he sniffed. He looked like a border collie, but was a little smaller - maybe it was just young and malnourished. Tubbo wondered briefly why it hadn’t been affected by the radiation - it looked just like a normal dog.

The dog flinched at the slightest movement, but eventually came close enough to sniff Tubbo’s hand. When it realised there was no food, it approached further, sniffing the boy until eventually it was nuzzling his backpack.

“What?” Tubbo asked, confusion edging his tone as he turned to face the dog. “What’s up? You want- oh, you want…” he trailed off. “I don’t know if I have any food. I’ll have a look.”

He opened up his bag, rummaging through it for a moment before pulling out some bread. “This is all I have, and it’s probably all irradiated, sorry.” The dog was wagging its tail. “I guess that doesn’t bother you though, huh?” Tubbo offered the bread, and the dog eagerly scarfed the food down.

The sound of the door shutting behind him made Tubbo jump, and he spun around in time to see Schlatt stretching. He turned back around, already feeling a little worse at the other’s presence.

Part of him felt guilty. Schlatt was actually helping him out, and Tubbo was grateful for that - he was looking out for him, and he definitely didn’t want to be alone out in the wasteland. But another part of him loathed Schlatt’s presence - he was like a dark cloud, a negative energy. He was snappy and irritable. Tubbo couldn’t blame him for that, they were both stressed out by the situation, but he felt like he was walking on eggshells around Schlatt. Not to mention, he was patronising, and almost everything he said was sarcastic or mocking in nature. Tubbo sighed.

“Why are you giving that flea-bitten thing our food?” Schlatt said, raising a brow at Tubbo. The younger boy just shrugged, keeping his eyes on the dog.

“He was hungry. It was kind of irradiated, anyway...”

Schlatt rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Just get it out of my sight. And get ready to move - we’re leaving in a few minutes, okay?”

Tubbo sighed again. “Okay,” he said, reaching a hand forward to pet the dog’s head. He definitely wasn’t going to get rid of the dog.

  
  


-

  
  


Tubbo stepped forward to stand at Schlatt’s side, and the two waved at the people of the settlement before they headed off on the rest of their journey.

“You haven’t gotten rid of that thing?” Schlatt scoffed, but he didn’t seem genuinely annoyed. Tubbo had mostly learned how to tell when Schlatt was actually angry and when he wasn’t, but he hadn’t perfected the art yet. The older man was still so difficult to read.

“I’m thinking of calling him Spins,” Tubbo said. The dog trotted along happily at his side.

“It’s probably all diseased and irradiated,” Schlatt said. Tubbo didn’t reply, and the three continued on in silence for a while.

“It’s really quiet,” Tubbo said after a while. It was a nice change, in contrast to the usual bird cries, distant sounds of conflict and buzzing of radroaches, bloodbugs and bloatflies.

Schlatt hummed some kind of absentminded agreement, then after a moment, he froze in his tracks. “You’re right. I’m an idiot.”   
  
Tubbo furrowed his brows in confusion, looking at the expression of painted horror on Schlatt’s face. “What? I never said that.”   
  
“Jesus, help me,” Schlatt muttered to himself quietly, before shaking his head. “Nope, you’re definitely still the idiot here. It’s not normally quiet, which means that quiet is bad.” Tubbo tilted his head, looking lost. Schlatt rolled his eyes and sighed, speaking slowly in a purposefully patronising tone. “Back in the settlement, somebody told me that when it goes quiet, a radstorm’s going to hit. It’s the animals taking shelter.”   
  
“Oh,” Tubbo said, and Schlatt’s words made him realise how uncomfortable Spins looked. His stance was low and his legs spread out, ears upright and alert. “Um… what do we do?”   
  
“Find shelter, you moron. Let’s get moving.”   
  
They carried on for a while, keeping an eye out for somewhere they could stay in the mostly barren wasteland.

“Over there!” Tubbo exclaimed, pointing at an opening in the side of a hill. “There’s a cave, we can stay in there.”

Schlatt nodded and they veered off in that direction, managing to arrive quick enough to keep safe from the radstorm.

-

The cave was dark but sheltered, and they had reached it just in time. Outside, the sky was already overcast and green in colour, and it was hard to see through the harsh winds and bright flashes of lightning that had started up. Spins padded deeper into the cave, and Schlatt followed after the canid, turning to glance back at Tubbo.

“Come on, we should keep away from the mouth,” he said.

“One sec,” Tubbo replied, pulling what Schlatt could only describe as junk from his backpack. It appeared to be some kind of windchime or shittily-made decoration - there were several tin cans connected to a string. He pulled out three of the strange things, and Schlatt scoffed and rolled his eyes, but leaned against the cave wall and waited for the brunette to finish whatever he was doing.

Tubbo approached the mouth of the cave, pulling the top of his shirt up over his mouth as some weak form of protection against the radstorm that was rapidly picking up pace. Reaching up on his tiptoes, he tied all three of the strange items he had made at separate points of the top of the cave. It was awkward to do, but he managed to lodge and tie them into crevices. When he was finished, he took some steps back to admire his work, before half-jogging back over to Schlatt.

The older man raised an eyebrow. “What was that all about?”

“Chimes,” Tubbo explained in response. “So if anything or anybody comes in we’ll hear them once the storm’s died down. Somebody back at the settlement showed me how to make them.”

Schlatt gave him a half-surprised look, a small smile creeping onto his face. “Smart,” he said, looking mildly impressed with the boy, and he patted his shoulder before continuing onward into the cavern.

Tubbo paused for a moment, blinking in surprise as he watched Schlatt continue on. Was that approval? From Schlatt? He blinked again, shocked, but a smile formed on his mouth and he skipped forward to join his companion.

-

The cave was shallower than they’d initially anticipated, but they made do. Schlatt had pulled out the blankets from their bags, laying them on the floor for them to sleep on. Right now, it was just past midnight and Schlatt was awake, keeping watch while tubbo slept. The entrance wasn’t properly visible from where they sat in the cave, especially with the darkness - but the radstorm had calmed down now, enveloping them in a more calm silence, and Schlatt had some faith in Tubbo’s chimes, so he wasn’t too worried.

Speaking of Tubbo, the teenager was curled up in a heap of blankets. The wasteland really did get cold at nighttime, Schlatt mused at the sight, and the thought made him realise just how cold he himself actually was. He shivered, wrapping his arms around himself and rubbing his forearms. Nearby Tubbo (or, more accurately, half on top of Tubbo) lay Spins. His mess of mostly-black fur made him difficult to pinpoint in the dark, but his occasional shuffling gave away his position where he lay, forepaws and head resting atop Tubbo’s chest. Schlatt gave a soft half-smile at the sight, but his feeling of contentment was short-lived when the loud, metallic clanging sound rang through the cave - the telltale sign of Tubbo’s chimes sounding.

Schlatt was quick to stiffen and peer over to the mouth of the cave, and Spins was quick to jump to his feet, too, snarling at the entrance. Tubbo sat up slowly, rubbing his bleary eyes tiredly. Schlatt strained his eyes to see in the darkness, and when his gaze focussed on the sight before him, he felt his heart sink

Slowly, he backed away, eyes still trained on the intruder. It was the one singular sight he had dreaded, the one thing he had hoped not to see. A deathclaw, and a large one at that; its ugly bipedal stance gave the creature away, as did the way its reptilian scales reflected the silver moonlight. It snarled with annoyance at the noise of the chimes, and Schlatt crept over to Tubbo, shaking the boy into full consciousness.

“Be quiet,” he whispered to the boy, who followed Schlatt’s gaze and stiffened up on instinct at the sight. He hadn’t seen a deathclaw before, but it was unmistakable. Its silhouette was fully visible against the mouth of the cave now, curled horns framing its snarling face. Schlatt squeezed Tubbo’s forearm, before creeping over to the wall, hidden in the shadows.

“What do we do?” Tubbo breathed, as silent as possible as he followed the horned man. The dog had seemed to understand, and followed them quietly over as well.

Schlatt paused, thinking for a moment, before sighing. “There isn’t much we can do. I guess… we’ve just gotta sneak as far as we can, bolt and pray to whatever fuckin’ God’s out there.” His teeth were gritted as he glared at the creature ahead. “Let’s go. Now.”

Tubbo didn’t protest. He stuck as close as possible to Schlatt, breath hitching when they got close to the reptilian monster. Suddenly, the ram hybrid stopped in front of him, and nodded at Tubbo. Schlatt silently mouthed a countdown from three, and on one they bolted, Spins pelting along beside them.

The deathclaw was quick to react to the noise, letting out a strangled noise not dissimilar to a roar. Tubbo risked a glance over his shoulder, which he soon discovered to be a mistake - there was a decent distance behind them, but the creature was keeping up pursuit well. Tubbo, startled at the sight (even though he hadn’t been expecting anything different) stumbled, and Schlatt paused on instinct to grab his wrist, pulling him along as they fled on in silence. Schlatt was too intent on getting away from the creature to even call Tubbo an idiot for his slip-up. However, after only a few more moments of running, Tubbo’s wrist was yanked from Schlatt’s grip as his foot lodged in a misshapen rock, and he crumpled onto the ground, letting out a half-pained, half fearful cry. Schlatt slowed and turned to glance over, eyes flicking between Tubbo and the rapidly approaching deathclaw. He took a few steps back.

“Schlatt,” came Tubbo’s strangled, terrified cry.

_ Run _ , screamed every part of Schlatt.

Spins hadn’t hesitated before going to stand over Tubbo, black and white furred body flat against the boy. His body language screamed fear, tail tucked beneath him and ears flat against his trembling form, but the snarls aimed towards the vile deathclaw screamed fidelity and valour.

Everything told Schlatt to run. His muscles were tensed with the urge to bolt, to flee, to protect himself.  _ He’s as good as dead, _ said a half-muted voice in his head.  _ Save yourself. There’s no hope for him. He’s only going to slow you down or get you killed. _

Schlatt groaned, and ignored every desperate instinct that begged him, screamed at him to run. He darted back over to where Tubbo lay, leg twisted at a grotesque, painful-looking angle.  _ Oh, God, _ he thought, groaning inwardly.  _ That better not be broken. _

He crouched down, trying to ignore the telltale sounds of impending doom - the beating of the deathclaw’s feet against the ground, the heavy snarls and strained, choked breaths. He grabbed Tubbo’s foot - luckily, he only had to twist it slightly and move it out, but Tubbo in his panic had not been able to do that himself. Tubbo let out a hiss of pain as Schlatt dislodged him. When Tubbo was freed, the two scrambled to their feet, and the deathclaw was upon them.

“Run,” came Schlatt’s voice. It sounded more irritated than panicked, but maybe that was intentional.

“What?”

“Are you deaf? Stupid? Get out of here, idiot!”

“I can’t just-”

“I said fucking  _ go _ !” Schlatt’s voice was almost a snarl, loud and dangerous as he turned back to the deathclaw. Tubbo took a few steps back, but he didn’t flee. He couldn’t bring himself to just leave Schlatt alone with that creature, despite the terror that racked his body. Spins didn’t move, taking threatening lunges at the deathclaw’s scaled ankles, but his bicoloured body trembled with every movement.

They didn’t really have weapons, so Schlatt’s best bet now was pulling out a combat knife he had kept on him. It wasn’t going to do much, but it was the only option he had.

Before he had a chance to even plan out his move, a searing, burning pain flared through him, and it took him a moment to pinpoint the source to a gash that had opened up on his face. He let out a pained noise and immediately pushed a hand onto his face - the heat of the blood was overwhelming, but he didn’t have time to think about the bubbling, searing pain that was shooting through him. He just about managed to dodge the creature’s next blow and ducked beneath it, its tall lumbering form quickly proving to be a disadvantage. Figuring his only real chance was to cripple the beast, as opposed to aiming to kill it, he spun and stabbed the knife quickly into the back of the creature's ankle, twisting it sharply before tugging it back out. The deathclaw let out a screech, and as soon as the knife was taken out Spins lunged forward to lock his jaw around the mutated tetrapod’s ankle, teeth digging into the already-bloodied flesh. Below where the canid gripped, Schlatt lodged the knife into its ankle again, and it shook its leg fiercely; Spins’ grip came loose and he was flung off, tearing a good chunk of scaled, bloodied flesh with him, and Schlatt took the opportunity to twist the knife and pull it out, ducking his way from under the creature. When it put its bloodied, mangled foot back onto the ground, the creature toppled and crumpled onto the ground, and Schlatt didn’t stick around to see if it clambered back up. Quickly, he turned around to meet back up with Tubbo and the dog.

“Your face,” Tubbo gasped between breaths, and only then did Schlatt remember the searing pain which had previously been numbed by the adrenaline. He hesitated, before grabbing Tubbo’s forearm with an iron grip and jogging on, ever so slightly slower than he would have liked to be moving with Tubbo’s injury in mind, his teeth gritted. Tubbo got the hint that Schlatt wasn’t in the mood to talk about his injury.

They had been travelling for a half hour before either of them felt safe or comfortable enough to speak up again, breaking the tense silence. Tubbo’s leg was searing with white hot agony, a weird, uncomfortable popping sensation occurring with every step he took. Schlatt’s hand had moved to grip him under his arm, helping him keep the weight off of it until they could properly examine it. Schlatt’s face still burned fiercely, and the blood flow had only just slowed - the hot, bubbling sensation around the wound made him wince. Inwardly he knew that it was the effects of radiation, and it would take a lot of treatment - but he kept that to himself for the sake of the teenager beside him, who winced with every limping step and seemed completely terrified. Schlatt didn’t even have it in him to tease or insult the boy. The dog accompanying them walked with a limp from landing awkwardly, but aside from those injuries the three had been lucky in their escape. They’d survive.

“Hey, you know, you could have just left me back there.” Tubbo’s voice was strained from the pain, but the corners of his lips were quirked in the beginnings of a smile.

“Yeah. Don’t make me regret that choice,” he grumbled, using the hand that wasn’t helping Tubbo walk to wipe some of the crimson off of his face. Most of it had dried by now, though.

They were both silent for a moment as they moved.

“Hey, Schlatt?”   
  
“What?”

“Thanks.”

Schlatt blinked for a moment, then let out a grumble.

“Whatever.”   
  
Maybe they were bloodied and bruised and barely able to walk, but they were alive.

They’d be okay.


End file.
